The Francis Marion University men's and women's track and field teams will open their 2025 outdoor season on Friday and Saturday (March 7-8) at the UNC Wilmington Seahawk Invitational Meet.
The meet will begin at 9 a.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. on Saturday at the Harold Greene Track and Field Complex.
Long-time head coach
Mark Bluman welcomes back eight returnees on the men's team and seven returnees on the women's squad. To those numbers, he has added 16 newcomers on the men's roster and 13 newcomers to the women's side.
"We're excited and ready to get after it this weekend," Bluman said. It has been about 15 months since Track 2.0 got green lit. All the recruiting, all the practices, all the study halls, have brought us to this point.
"For this year's team, it really got underway in the fall on Aug. 19. We were fortunate enough to have a strong core of returnees (
Ryan Hunter,
Andrew Lance,
Michael James,
Leigh Detalo,
Meri Ellen Johnson, and Jordyn and
MacKinley Perry) to set the example during the practices, in the classroom, and just overall on how to succeed and grow.
"One thing I didn't foresee is how tight the freshmen class has become. Normally with track squads, teams bond within their events, but this group has bonded pretty well regardless of their event. The dorm experience on campus played a role with that.
"There have been a lot of standouts in practices so far and they have brought with it high expectations. A few of the first-year female athletes that have stood out are
Aukeyonna Sims (jumps/sprints),
Jazmine McDonald-Craft (throws),
Emma Steen (mid-distance),
Rowan Hearn (distance/steeple), and
Rileigh Lacy (pole vault). They are looking to be competitive in the conference and leave their name in the record books." All five are in-state products with Sims and Lacy both coming from Darlington High School, and Steen from Hartsville High School.
Jordyn Perry was last year's team most valuable athlete. The squad's 4x400-meter relay team of Johnson,
Taylor Shiver, and the Perrys scored at the Conference Carolinas Championship Meet by placing eighth.
"On the men's side, Hunter (javelin/sprints) looks to improve on what was a great debut for him last year.
Daryl Causey (throws),
Davin Staley (jumps/sprints),
Rashawn Byrd (jumps), and
Jalen Keller (sprints) are just a few first-year athletes to remember as we progress through the season."
Hunter, last year's team MVP, will compete in the 100-meters, 200-meters, and 4x100-meters in addition to throwing the javelin. He won three of five javelin competitions last season, broke the 38-year-old school record, and finished fifth at the Conference Carolinas Championship Meet. In the last 2024 regular-season meet, he tied the 29-year-old school record in the 100 meters, with a time of 10.86.
Lance has been an Academic All-District selection for the past two seasons.
The Patriots will compete in four regular-season meets leading up to the Conference Carolinas Championships, April 25-26, at Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Among the regular-season meets is the FMU Patriots Invitational that will be held on Friday, April 4, at 10 a.m. at the Florence Sports Complex.
